Sunday, November 24, 2013

Arvinda DeSilva,
Sachin Tendulkar, Brian Lara, Adam Gilchrist, Mahendra Dhoni… you can put some
more on that list…….

Aussies now lead the
Ashes Series after their win at Gabba ~ Ashes !! – yes, the notional prize in
the Test Series between England and Australia.
The term originated in a satirical obituary published in a British
newspaper, The Sporting Times, immediately after Australia's 1882 victory at
The Oval, their first Test win on English soil. The obituary stated that
English cricket had died, and the body will be cremated and the ashes taken to
Australia. The mythical ashes immediately became associated with the 1882–83 series
played in Australia and the series thereafter.

Today, at Brisbane,
after two rain interruptions, including a hail storm that scattered the crowd
on day four, Johnson took five wickets as Australia dismissed England for 179
in the second innings late Sunday to claim its first victory in 10 Test
matches. For those not following the game – would be too surprised to know that
the hero of day 1 was not named at all……… because Aussies hate him and has been
given an awful treatment ~ the man who
took 6 wickets in the first innings [5 on day 1] was not named as the local
paper was refusing to even print his photograph or include his name in the list
of combatants on the first day of the Ashes series.

That may never reveal
the blood spilling … it is reported that every Aussie went for the kill;
when Mitchell Johnson bowled …. It was
four slips, a fly slip, two leg slips, silly mid off, short leg.
Australia needed this win badly. They had not won a Test in 10 attempts and an
Ashes Test in eight goes. ~ and there
are reports that Michael Clarke challenged the last man Jimmy Anderson to face
Johnson stating ‘get ready for a broken arm’ in a more nastier language… … this
is no boxing bout and no. 11 invariably gets out for low scores – anything
great in that ?

Statistically, George
Bailey's wicket was Graeme Swann's 250th in Tests. He is only the second
England spinner, after Derek Underwood, and the seventh England bowler to take
250 or more Test wickets. Swann, who took 105 innings to reach the landmark, is
second only to Ian Botham who picked up his 250th wicket in his 94th innings.
He took none in the first and in the second took 2 but they came at the cost of
215 runs, ranking third on his list for most runs conceded in an innings in
Tests. Swann has returns of 4 for 376 runs in two matches at the Gabba at an
average of 94.0 and at a strike rate of 156.

The Australian Press
hails the victory stating that it was brutal attack ~ after Clarke’s outrage,
Umpires were forced to calm proceedings as the sun set on a brilliant Test for
Australia. They call it a brutal victory and mental disintegration of England's
key batsmen ~ for a win that comes after 4-0 loss to India and a 3-0 loss to
England this year.

It is ‘Courier Mail’
the newspaper which refused to print the name of Stuart Broad who took 6
wickets in the 1st innings – citing the instance of his refusal to walk in the
1st test at Trent Bridge in Aug this year.
The crowd at Brisbane also booed Broad and there were banners
criticizing him…. All from Aussies who never believed in walking ~ save Adam
Gilchrist.

the way Courier Mail reported the match...

Ricky Ponting, the
Australia captain, in a similar situation against Pakistan when a caught-behind appeal against him was turned down – stayed put fully knowing
that he had nicked it……… he had done that many a times, so also many other teammates of his. They will term it as playing the game the
hard way. In the New Zealand-Sri Lanka
game in Mumbai involved a controversial decision when what appeared to be
clean, and a brilliantly taken, one-handed catch by Nathan McCullum off Mahela
Jayawardene was ruled not out by the third umpire Amish Saheba as replays were
possibly inconclusive. Jayawardene, once the catch was claimed, stayed his
ground and ultimately got the decision in his favour.

After that Trent
bridge test, Stuart Broad admitted that England may well have lost the first
Ashes Test in Nottingham had he walked after edging a ball to first slip - but
he stands by his decision to stand his ground. In that most controversial
moment of the series, which England won 3-0, Broad was caught by Michael Clarke
at first slip off left-arm spinner Ashton Agar’s bowling but was given not out
by umpire Aleem Dar. Clarke and several of his team-mates pleaded with Dar but
were powerless to overturn the decision because they had already burned their
two reviews. In that close match England defeated Australia by 14 runs.